Mehmet Kemal

Mehmed Kemal Bey

Mehmed Kemâl Bey (March 1, 1884 – April 10, 1919) was an Ottoman administrative officer and teacher.

Life[]

Kemâl was born on March 1, 1884 in Beirut to a family originating in Larissa (Thessaly), and was educated in Antalya and Izmir. Afterward he studied at what is now Ankara University. In 1909 he concluded his studies and became a kaymakam (provincial governor). In the 1915, he became the governor of Boğazlıyan province. In this function he became one of the perpetrators of the Armenian Genocide. There was strong resistance to the massacres among the region's Turkish population. In 1919 he was tried by a military court and sentenced to death.^[1] During the trial, he maintained that he was innocent and followed the orders he was given.^[2] On April 10, 1919 he was publicly hanged in Bayazit Square in Istanbul.

Aftermath[]

On October 10, 1922, Kemal was declared a "National Martyr" (Ottoman Turkish şehid-i millî, Turkish Millî Şehit) by the Grand National Assembly. In 1926, the Turkish State gifted his family two properties confiscated during the Armenian deportations. In 1973 his grave was renovated and Kemâl was given the title of "Martyr of the Nation". His grave was declared a memorial.^[3]

References[]

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